CAMPhotography Megan Taylor
Everyone was holding hands and swaying to the music – there was a tear in my eye
Lord Smith of Finsbury (Pembroke 1969)
Why Robbie Williams’ Angels proved the perfect tune to bring down the curtain – for now – on Chris Smith’s musical journey at Cambridge.
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25 November 2025
Lord Smith of Finsbury (Pembroke 1969) arrived at College as a young man with a passion for English – and politics.
Following his double first in English (and later a PhD on Wordsworth and Coleridge), he went on to build a successful career in public life: as MP for Islington South and Finsbury from 1983, as a member of the shadow cabinet holding a number of front bench posts, and as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport until 2001.
But he was also a breaker of barriers as the first openly gay male MP in the House of Commons – and the first openly gay cabinet minister anywhere in the world. In 2005, he stood down from the Commons and was made a life peer.
Since then, he’s chaired the Environment Agency and the Advertising Standards Authority, and in 2015, he returned to his beloved Pembroke as Master. Now, following his election as the University’s 109th Chancellor, he’s delighted to be bringing a wealth of experience to this 800-year-old role
"Universities are the places where research is done, where ideas are generated, where the future is put together. We need to persuade governments of the sheer importance of that role, because I don’t think they recognise it yet."
Che gelida manina, La Bohème
Giacomo Puccini, 1896
I had a wonderful group of friends at Pembroke who were passionate about opera. But, as a theatre lover, I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to sing the words. They informed me that it was about the combination of sight, sound, music, speech, costumes and sets. And they took me to the Royal Opera House to see Puccini’s La Bohème for my birthday. I was transfixed. I came out in tears. And that was my conversion to opera. Any version of this song sets me off: it’s the most beautiful first interaction between the penniless poet Rodolfo and his beautiful fellow garret-dweller Mimi.
Photography Megan Taylor
Sanctus, Requiem in D minor
Op 48, Gabriel Fauré, 1890
I spent a further three years at Pembroke as a postgraduate, and once again a group of friends were instrumental in introducing me to this work. We all packed into a battered old car and drove up to Ely Cathedral to hear a performance of Fauré’s Requiem. Sitting in that glorious cathedral, looking up at the Lantern and listening to this wonderful music flooding over us was just magical. I’ve chosen the Sanctus but the In Paradisum is a very close second. I was very lucky to have such good friends with whom to experience this music.
Bridge Over Troubled Water Simon and Garfunkel, 1970
Bridge Over Troubled Water
Simon and Garfunkel, 1970
The night before every exam, I developed my own routine. I’d go out and walk around the Pembroke Gardens. I loved the beauty, the darkness and the silence. Then I’d go back to my room and play Bridge Over Troubled Water. It was a wonderfully calming experience. I have no idea whether it did me any good in the exams the following day! But I just loved its calming effect: I wanted a way of settling myself and it worked. It was so beautiful – it still is – and it just seemed natural to play it.
Hallelujah Leonard Cohen, 1984
Hallelujah
Leonard Cohen, 1984
When I was coming to the end of my Mastership, the Pembroke Choir had a concert scheduled and asked me if I would like to choose two songs for them to sing. I have loved Cohen since Suzanne came out in 1967 – I used to play it constantly – and Hallelujah is the perfect combination of his genius as a poet and a musician. Anna Lapwood, who was then Director of Music for Pembroke, wrote a special version for the Choir. Hearing them sing it for me felt absolutely amazing.
Danny Boy Sung by Thomas Spencer, 2021
Danny Boy
Sung by Thomas Spencer, 2021
This was the second of the songs that the Pembroke Choir sang for me. But it has another resonance, too. Four years ago, I had a birthday party at Pembroke and my friend, the tenor Thomas Spencer, came and sang it for me. As a birthday present, he gave me a CD of his performance. I first heard Danny Boy at a friend’s party: we were staying in the Victorian castle on the island of Rhum, and one evening, his brother sat down at the piano and played it. I don’t have any Irish roots but I’ve loved it ever since.
Angels Robbie Williams, 1997
Angels
Robbie Williams, 1997
At the end of my final May Ball as Master, I made it all the way to the survivors’ photographs and was very proud of myself. Everyone was gathered at the front of the stage and then, of course, Angels was played: it’s almost become the Pembroke theme tune over recent years, so I really had to choose it. Everyone was holding hands and swaying to the music and there was definitely a tear in my eye. It’s such a wonderful pop song that means so much to so many people.
A new chancellor
The role of Chancellor may be ceremonial – but it comes with considerable responsibilities. “You’re a figurehead for the University,” says Lord Smith. “You can and should be a voice for and an advocate for everything the University believes in, and everything it does.” His advocacy during his 10-year tenure will focus on academic freedom and freedom of speech. “We have seen, all too obviously, what happens when academic freedom disappears, over the other side of the Atlantic. We need to defend that principle very fiercely here. Freedom of speech is allied to that, because a university has to be a place of debate, discussion and contested ideas. It’s not a place of received wisdom.”
He also plans to champion the role of the University as a catalyst for innovation and growth.
“Universities are the places where research is done, where ideas are generated, where the future is put together. We need to persuade governments of the sheer importance of that role, because I don’t think they recognise it yet.” And as someone with strong ties to his College, he hopes to ensure that the University and the Colleges work ever more closely together. “Cambridge is at its best when you get that collaborative approach.”
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